A Racial History of Drowning

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A Racial History of Drowning
So that eventually every kid learns to swim



The Atlantic
James Hamblin
June, 11 2013


"Children should be taught never to roughhouse in water and never to hold another child underwater." So recommends author Jane Brody at The New York Times yesterday, on the importance of teaching kids to swim. Amid that sort of advice, she makes a right turn into the shadows: drowning is the number-two cause of death in children -- and <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">racial disparities in the statistics are important to consider in improving safety</span>. She writes:


"According to the USA Swimming Foundation, about
- 70 percent of African-American children,

- 60 percent of Latino children and

- 40 percent of white children​

are non-swimmers.

Lack of access and financial constraints account only partly for these numbers. Fear, cultural factors and even cosmetic issues play a role as well.

"Before the Civil War, <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">more blacks than whites could swim</span>," Lynn Sherr, the author of Swim: Why We Love the Water, said in an interview. "There are many stories of shipwrecks in which black slaves rescued their owners."

Segregation. But as Ms. Sherr learned from Bruce Wigo of the International Swimming Hall of Fame, <SPAN style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">segregation destroyed the aquatic culture of the black community</span>. "Once whites discovered swimming, blacks were increasingly excluded from public pools and lifeguarded beaches," Mr. Wigo told her.

As a result, many minority parents never learned how to swim. Adults who can't swim often fear the water and, directly or indirectly, convey that fear to their children."

Cultural difference in the arena are slowly normalizing thanks to the work of people like 29-year-old African-American Olympic gold-medal swimmer Cullen Jones, who works in his spare time as a motivational speaker "dedicated to helping minorities learn how to swim." He was the second black swimmer to ever win gold, after Anthony Ervin in Sydney in 2000. Meanwhile, for better or worse, Ryan Lochte is the one who has a TV show.

whiteonlyswimm.jpg


It wasn't until August 25, 1981, that Charles "Tuna" Chapman became the first black person to swim the English Channel -- 106 years after the first white person did it. He was the 220th person overall.



SOURCE



 
Among the first things I did for my children: drown-proof them -- by teaching them to swim. Across this country, black children are near various tempting sources of perceived fun: oceans, rivers, lakes, ponds, canals, quarries, etc. I happen to live along the Gulf where there is also an abundance of rivers, creeks as large as rivers, canals, lakes and swamp -- and it seems every year, March - November, black kids needlessly die of drowning, the overwhelming majority of whom are non-swimmers.
 
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